


The Great Thaw

by GaydineRoss



Category: Apex Legends (Video Games)
Genre: Backstory, EA wont give us lore for Bloodhound so I´m gonna do it for them!, Established Relationship, Flashbacks, Fluff, LifeLore appears a couple of times, Other, There's a lot of tears, bloodhound: im about to end this man's who career, capitalism: exists, domestic miragehound, miragehound, visually impaired bloodhound, yeah I definitely didn't just take the Pesach story and change the names of everything slightly
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-18
Updated: 2019-05-20
Packaged: 2020-03-07 13:25:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18874093
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GaydineRoss/pseuds/GaydineRoss
Summary: Bloodhound is returning to their family to celebrate one the most important days in their religious calendar: The Great Thaw, the exodus of their people from their homeworld after a revolution against their rulers. Bloodhound invited Elliot, telling him it's a time for stories, drinking, and the celebration of new life. But what their boyfriend does not know, is that it haunting time of mourning for them. Will Elliot be able to help them find joy in the holiday again?





	1. Dawnrise Song

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys it's your friendly neighbourhood Miragehound writer at it with the turning of my holidays into gay space festivals. I don't have a solid plan for this, so we'll see how this goes. This will be a multi-chapter fic with a lot of backstory and domestic Miragehound because who doesn't want them holding hands under the table whilst reading the Haggadah?

Elliot awoke to the sound of opening drawers. He brushed his curls out his face and shifted over to watch Bloodhound folding clothes into a backpack. He sat up, worried that they were in trouble.   
“Something wrong, darlin’?”   
Bloodhound shook their head. Their hair was in a messy plait and they were still in their nightgown. They leant over their bag give Elliot’s forehead an excited kiss.   
“Next week is the beginning of Hið Mikla Þíða, I have to return home to honour the Allfather and celebrate with my people!”   
Elliot was somewhat dazed. They had seen Bloodhound happy, of course, but never before so excited. He vaguely remembered them mentioning the holiday one slightly drunken night they had spent cuddling when he had asked them to gently talk him to sleep. Bloodhound was proud about their religion, but their experience with it was fairly personal. He was happy to see them practically bouncing with excitement, though it almost felt unnatural to see them so unrestrained. He must’ve just been staring lovingly at them because he was caught off guard when they spoke up again.   
“Do you want to come with me, Elskan?”   
Elliot pondered the question. Was this supposed to be an important step? Did Bloodhound want him there or was this a courtesy?   
“I have nothing planned for next week, and naturally I’ll always leap at the chance to spend more time with the love of my life.” He breathed the last few words against their skin as he clambered out of bed and wrapped his strong arms around their way. Bloodhound tossed the large overcoat they were folding onto the bed, turning in Elliot's arms to kiss him. Packing could wait.   
“I can’t wait to share this with you. It’s my favourite holy day, you know?”   
Elliot pressed their noses together briefly, inhaling the early morning air.   
“Víðir, you spoil me, really.” 

Víðir Ashiro. The true name of Bloodhound. A name that only Elliot knew, at least as far as he could tell. Between their excessive handsiness and excited kissing that day, Víðir barely had the chance to explain the full story behind Hið Mikla Þiða. From what Elliot understood, Víðir's homeworld had once been overruled by a cruel aristocratic class from a neighbouring planet, invaded for their natural resources, despite having lived peacefully side by side for hundreds of years. They recounted going to school to be taught that their people and their family were nothing, and that their Gods were not real, not to mention that they were raised knowing they would probably never amount to much, because they had no way to. They had scars across their back from where they had been beaten as a child by a guard for wearing a symbol of the Allfather in public. The Liberation had happened in Víðir's lifetime, they were 17 when their planet was destroyed and they were forced to evacuate and build a new life with their community elsewhere. Elliot imagined them as a bystander, watching their whole world burn and their people with it. They had gotten a little quiet around some of the details, but assured him that the festival was a happy one. There would be drinking, and eating, and singing; all whilst telling the story of The Great Thaw. It was called so because the first day of liberation was the first day of the year that no snow remained on the ground. Elliot knew he had a lot to look forward to as he climbed into bed with his beloved that night, barely able to help them contain their joy. 

Elliot awoke the next morning just after sunrise. He was used to finding the side of the bed next to him empty. Víðir rose early most days to pray to the Allfather at sunrise. Elliot had become especially fond of winter, given that it meant he could spend more time holding his datefriend, sleeping in with them. He rolled over to the other side, watching sleepily with his head on their pillow as their sat on the floor, facing their shrine. This time, the large prayer book came out. Víðir had memorised most of them already, but on special occasions they read from their enormous braille book. Elliot could only marvel at their speed and passion for their prayer. They were quiet, but they were poetic, and their singing voice give the unfamiliar words a comforting feeling. He got up, kissing the crown of their head on his way past so as not to interrupt them, and went ahead with making breakfast. Víðir was always forgetting to eat, and with such a long journey back to their homeworld, Elliot knew that Ajay would kill him if he didn’t keep them healthy. 

On their sofa, over their bowls of Solacian sweet rice, they silently rested their heads on each others’ shoulders. Víðir hummed impatiently, every second praying to be going faster. They were anxious to show Elliot their homeworld; their culture, their traditions. Perhaps they could introduce him to their family, or what was left of it. 

Hands interwoven, their left their little home in the Outlands; preparing for their little adventure together. Backpacks strapped, Arthur free to roam for the week, and Víðir letting Elliot guide them as opposed to using their cane; they had nothing to be concerned about. There was no ring waiting for them, no death or glory, just a skyship waiting to bring them an unknown place of peace and contemptment.


	2. Dried Persimmon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the gay continues y'all (feat. LifeLore)

Anita and Ajay came to see them off at the terminal and wish Víðir Gleðileg Þíða, arm in arm and with Antia having to bend down kiss her girlfriend’s cheek. Ajay gave Víðir a small bloom of pink and yellow flowers, describing them to them; knowing that they would in no doubt appreciate the traditional gift. Víðir promised to return with a bunch of the spring flowers for them both, as a mark of good fortune and a blessing to their home. They all quickly exchanged hugs and goodbyes before Elliot and Víðir boarded the ship. Ajay pulled Elliot in with a laugh, cupping her hand over his ear.   
“If something goes wrong, you call me. And if they get hurt, I hope their Gods are protectin’ you, ‘cause I won’t be.”   
Elliot shuddered at the thought. He knew that this was more of a promise than a threat; and she would kill him outside of the ring too, where he would actually die and in all the places that would be considered too graphic to be named, even in the Outerlands. He nodded shyly as he leant back to take his datefriend’s hand. They entered the skyship together, still waving to their friends, arms intertwined. 

Aboard the skyship, they took a small cabin together; two beds to sit on with a table in the middle. Víðir took a thick book out of their bag, setting it down and feeling for the wooden bookmark in between the colourful pages, the one Elliot had made them. It had all sorts of intricate grooves and patterns that they could feel, instead of seeing. Many people over the years had offered them any number of technological ways to read, including the always patronising ‘I’ll read to you.’ Even if they could still read very large print, or listen to an audiobook, they still prefered the feeling of their own books, in their own language. Víðir kept one hand on their page, two fingertips running over it gently, as they held their other hand out across the table. Elliot sighed contentedly, taking it and giving their hand a calming squeeze. 

He gazed at them lovingly as they read. They had a black cloth mask with floral embroidery to help them breathe, which had been a gift from Elliot´s mother; something they only wore on truly special occasions. Their long black hair flowed freely, some in tiny delicate braids, held into locks with tiny metal clasps that seemed to be a thousand years old, given how much he found them repairing them. Their dark orange glasses shielded their eyes from piercing lights, helping to preserve the vision they had left. Their clothes were like none Elliot had ever seen them wear before. They wore a kind of decorated vest with snug green sleeves underneath a deep blue sleeveless wrap-around gown that just covered their knees, their prefered woolen trousers and combat boots underneath. Elliot had no idea if those were regarded as traditional or not, but he didn’t care to ask. He put on some old clunky headphones and leant against the cold window, watching the stars go by. He fell asleep with their hands still together, calmed by Víðir running the thumb tenderly over his knuckles. 

The journey would take an entire day, passing several suns. Víðir famously didn’t trust a lot of people’s food, given that the majority of foods made them quite ill. They gently shook Elliot’s hand to wake him a few hours later, passing him a metal box in a bag. It was just like the one they often took hunting, only it was covered in yellow and orange decorations. Did they make it just for him?

“I thought you’d be hungry by now, elskan.” They said, carefully folding up their mask and putting it into their bag to eat. 

Elliot was pretty hungry, now that he thought about it. He leant forward to kiss their hand, lingering as their eyes met. ‘Fuck,’ he thought, ‘what did I do to deserve them?’ 

He opened the box, closing his eyes as he breathed in each different smell. Salted chickpeas, goat roasted in the giant mint leaves that grew in the Outerlands, raw fish covered in chilli, dried persimmon; it was everything that Elliot loved. What he truly loved was the effort that his beloved out into every little thing in the box. They caught or foraged for most of the things they ate, they preserved and cooked all of that and more; from the goat being reared to the cooking of the still warm rice that they had placed between them to share, it was hours of effort for mere minutes of ecstacy of the senses. He went straight for the roasted goat, a small tear forming in his eye as he bit into it. 

“Are you okay, Elliot?” They asked, putting down their own piece of persimmon. 

“Yeah,” he whispered, “I just really love you.” 

The rest of the journey continued quietly, with more reading, snacking, and eventually falling asleep. They had pushed the two thin mattresses together across the table and held onto each other as the quiet rumbling of the ship buzzed them to sleep. 

Elliot would spend years after that wondering, despite all of the suffering and pain in his life, what he had done to deserve such a perfect day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Icelandic Notes:   
> Gleðileg Þíða - Gleh-thee-leght phEEtha - literally means Merry Thaw because I'm unoriginal but you get the idea  
> Elskan - els-scAhn - darling


	3. Tea for Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gays come get y'all juice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I headcanon that Bloodhound has EDS (hence the mask and all the padding they wear in the ring) so don't be freaked out about what happens to them. It happens to me all the time irl.

A loud horn woke them up early the next morning to alert them to the fact that they had one hour before the train would arrive in Sjákishima. Víðir groaned as the rolled over to be closer to Elliot, pulling his arm over them, making him hold them for just a little longer. They silently arranged their things and dressed for the day, giggling almost silently as bumped against each other in the tiny cabin. Every other moment was taken up with sharing a sleepy hug or a tired kiss, often just waiting with their foreheads together. Elliot kept one arm out to offer some support. He could tell it was probably going to be one of those mornings when his datefriend was in a lot of pain. He pushed the mattresses back into their frames and helped Víðir sit down. He would always do what he could to make things less painful for them. He wrapped a blanket around them and kissed their forehead, promising to back with hot water for tea. He wasn’t even gone for more than two minutes; he was certain of it, it took only seconds for him to fill up their teapot. Yet, no matter how often it happened in the mornings, it still broke his heart just as much to find them curled up on the bed, crying. 

“Hey,” he whispered, putting a gentle hand on their shoulder, “I have tea.” 

He put the teapot down on the table, and carefully helped them to sit up, staying right besides them. He wiped their tears away with the corner of his sleeve, watching them rest their dislocated wrist down in their lap. 

“I’ll get the pillow.” Elliot reached behind Víðir to grab a pillow, pressing it into their shoulder and putting his arms around them. They held their wrists against his back, slowly pressing their face into the pillow and waiting for the real agony. 

“It’s okay,” he promise, “you can do it whenever you’re ready.” 

There was a moment of heavy breathing before they let out a loud scream into the pillow, with an even louder snap following from their wrist as they forced the joint back into place. He listened to them try to keep back their tears, only hear them start crying again. Elliot would always wonder how on earth they kept it together in the ring. Sure, they had braces and all the help Ajay could give them, but he knew they were still in incredible pain. 

Elliot waited for them to let go on their own time. He ran one of their small braids between his fingers in the meantime, only getting up once they had nodded at his repeated question of tea. Given the state of their wrist, he knew that it would be a good time to use one of their straws. Sterile plastic straws were difficult to come by in their system. Ever since they had been banned across earth hundreds of years before they gradually become more rare and more expensive. Even at the height of their fame and wealth, Elliot and Víðir still often struggled to find safe ones to use. He poured the hot tea into separate cups, pulling the blanket around them both and very carefully holding their injured hand as they sipped in silence.

Eventually, the skyship came to a stop. Elliot packed away the last of their things and tied their backpacks together so he could carry them both. With his beautiful datefriend on his arm, they both wondered out into the warming sun. He felt the crunch of thin snow under his feet as they walked past the terminal, greeted by sight of lucious yellow and pink flowers everywhere. The smells of the markets wafted past him, a chill breeze whispering past his ears and the shouts of traditional music clawing at him to go into the city, and find the world of his beloved. 

Despite their pain, Víðir didn’t stop smiling for the rest of the morning. Hot stewed plums with flatbreads and lemon tea filled their stomachs as the last of the winter ice melted around them. Elliot had a hard time trying to describe as much as possible to them as they walked through the winding streets, trying to find the address that Víðir had in the back of an old notebook. Trays of food and flowers seemed to follow them everywhere, the frantic beating of rugs came and went with the tuning of instruments and polishing of bells. Every so often there would be a particular sound or smell and Elliot would feel Víðir skip along with a little extra excitement. 

After asking for directions several times, and getting lost several more times after that, they finally reached an address on the outskirts of the city. Elliot stopped them both outside the door, taking Víðir’s hand for a gentle reassuring squeeze. 

“Be honest with me, are your parents gonna like me?” He asked nervously, frantically trying to straighten out the collar of his shirt. 

Víðir giggled quietly, the outline of their smile under their mask illuminated by the streetlights. They held Elliot´s waist, leaning up to quickly kiss him. 

“Elliot Witt, the most charming man in the galaxy, is afraid that he won’t be liked; you really are full of surprises. You have nothing to worry about, elskan.” 

They pushed the door open, leading him up the narrow staircase and out of the cold. 

“Móðir! Ég er heima!” They called out, folding up their cane and setting their coat down on the back of a chair that they had instinctively known would be there for them. Elliot watched them take off their boots and crouch in front of a rack of shoes underneath the coat hooks. They felt along the wall for their braille name, putting their boots on the rack meant for them. They continued to feel alone the wall, waving at Elliot to give them him shoes. 

“This one is for you.” They said, pointing to a label on the rack. 

‘Elliot’, it read. 

He could only smile as he took off his shoes; he really did have nothing to worry about.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Icelandic notes:   
> Móðir - mow-thir - mother  
> Ég er heima - yegh air hey-mah - I'm home

**Author's Note:**

> Icelandic notes:  
> Víðir - WEEthir - what I decided as their first name that only Elliot is allowed to know  
> Hið Mikla Þiða - hEEth Mikla phEEthah - The Great Thaw 
> 
> (These are the best pronunciations I can give bc I'm very HoH please tell me if I got something wrong)
> 
> Víðir Ashiro because I headcanon that they're half Icelandic and half Japanese based on their words and legendary skins. That's gonna be the same for everything I write.


End file.
